Name That Star

Before there was television, parents kept their kids entertained by taking them outside at night and making up stories about the stars! Our family has always enjoyed looking at the night sky. We've bundled up in a sleeping bag and watched a lunar eclipse, gotten up after midnight to watch a meteor shower, and traveled miles into the country to get a telescopic of a comet. We used to have our own telescope, but we still prefer the naked eye, and occasionally a pair of binoculars. The very first thing you need to locate in the sky is the North Star, also known as the Pole Star, the Dog Star, Polaris and the Phoenician Star. To find it, look in the Northern part of the sky. The star isn't very bright. Look at the picture below to see how it relates to the Big Dipper, which is the next thing you need to know about!

Once you find these popular stars, move on and find some of the planets. The most easy to find is Venus. There is a wonderful free sky map at http://www.astroviewer.com/ that will show you how the sky looks at YOUR house at any given time. To find Venus, go to the map, and type in 'Venus' in the "Search Celestial Object". (Hit enter after you type it. There's not a button to push.) Venus will flash on the map. You can print the map and take it outside to find Venus in the sky, although sometimes you'll have to get up early to do it!

These basic discoveries in the sky will hopefully whet your appetite to find out more. Every day and night there is a show up for you to see. What's interesting in the sky tonight? Find out at here. Find out when to see meteor showers, eclipses, phases of the moon, and much more!

A couple more sites to explore: For kids, you can't get any better than www.dustbunny.com! It has a great introductory section, sky maps, information on planets and a lot more.

For a fun and games approach to the sky, check out www.kidsastronomy.com.

And as always, Amazon.com has a great assortment of books of the subject:

	Astronomy for Dummies is a great introduction to Astronomy for adults and older kids.
	Visit the Zoo in the Sky with your younger elementary school child.
	Astronomy : Discoveries, Solar System, Stars, Universe will appeal to older elementary, middle and high school students. (Parents like it, too!)

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